It started out with a simple question to get an idea of the interest level being generated by the CBJ fans who follow me on twitter. What I received was arguably a bit expected (as I am the forever optimist) but it was also a pleasant surprise for anyone with a slightly pessimistic attitude towards Columbus and the sub 15k average attendance over the last couple of seasons.

To my followers, this tweet was offered:

The response (within the first few minutes):

Feeling good about the year yet? I sure am. I’ll admit, in the midst of an emotional lockout I was ready to take a second look at how I followed the sport of hockey. Could I commit to being a die hard again? Could I spend hours analyzing my favourite team, pouring thoughts into best strategies and twitter battling with jerkstore fans crashing the #CBJ feed?

The answer, quite clearly to this point, is yes. As I’ve said before, it’s not about the fans, but this is OUR team. We are about to embark on a season full of effort, led by a group of guys who are here to play hard-nosed hockey. We’ve got established hockey minds in the right places, a GM who can and has made strong moves, and a strong future between our current prospects and the three top tier players we are going to receive in the first round of the 2013 draft.

So get with it. Take advantage of what you’re seeing above. Normal people bleeding CBJ colours on opening night this coming Monday. Give me a good reason why you aren’t going to show up. In fact, just show up. You are bound to have a great time. You’ll get to hear that Anthem belting beauty Leo Welsh sing the National Anthem. If the chills start and stop there, I’ll be shocked. Our boys in Union Blue have a lot to prove and will be playing their hearts out. I expect nothing less from them this season.

It won’t surprise me if Columbus fans fill the seats on Monday. Just imagine what they’d do if our team actually won a few games in a row…